5 Injured by Israeli Gunfire Along Gaza Border

by Naharnet Newsdesk30 November 2010, 11:49

Five Palestinians were injured Tuesday by Israeli gunfire while scrounging for construction material in the rubble near Gaza's northern border with Israel, Palestinian medics said.

The Israeli military said it had opened fire on three Palestinians approaching the border fence after they failed to respond to warning shots.

Adham Abu Selmiya, a spokesman for the Hamas-run medical services in the Gaza Strip, said five Gazans in their early twenties were shot as they scavenged for building material in Beit Lahiya along the border with Israel.

Abu Selmiya and ambulance workers, who took the Palestinians to the nearby Kamal Odwan hospital, said all five sustained light to moderate gunshot wounds to their legs.

The Israeli military said it shot the men after firing into the air to try to keep them away from the border area.

"The area adjacent to the security fence is a combat zone, used by terrorist organizations to carry out attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers and to plan kidnapping attempts," an Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman told AFP.

"During this morning's incident, soldiers fired warning shots in the air a number of times in an attempt to drive the suspects away from the fence," she added.

"When the suspects failed to consent, the force fired towards their lower bodies and identified a hit."

The military said it was only aware that three Palestinians had been injured in the incident.(AFP)